Common causes of cloud sprawl

Cloud sprawl occurs when individual departments within an organization deploy their own applications in the cloud. Oftentimes these applications are managed by departments outside IT, which can lead to security vulnerabilities as well as additional costs. Jonathan listed several ways in which cloud sprawl can occur include the following.

Individual departments (AKA – “Shadow IT”) are lured by the ease in which they can purchase and deploy applications. In many cases, all it takes is a swipe of a credit card and suddenly they’re “in the cloud.”

A key issue for companies experiencing cloud sprawl is that there is no single “cloud ambassador” who has control over cloud costs. This is often coupled by a lack of adequate reporting on cloud usage from the organization’s cloud service provider (CSP).

Cloud sprawl risks

Departments that “go rogue” in the cloud, typically host applications haven’t been vetted by their IT department to ensure the organization’s security and compliance standards are met. As a result, sensitive information ends up being stored outside the company’s firewall and outside the IT department’s control. Existing cloud resources that IT has already invested in end up being underutilized, costing organizations unnecessary expense.

Two ways to control cloud sprawl

In order to control cloud sprawl and scale resources effectively, Jonathan recommends that organizations create a strategic plan that outlines and allocates existing cloud resources. Assets should be inventoried according to which department is utilizing them. They should also be categorized by usage – are they earmarked for a permanent or temporary initiative.

“Organizations need to determine where their cloud solutions will reside, and how they will be operated,” Jonathan recommends. “There should also be a designated person who has authority to request changes, order additional capacity or add/remove users.”

Don’t let cloud sprawl impact your bottom line. Log onto our podcast for more tips on how to effectively scale your cloud investments. You can also contact HOSTING anytime for help in streamlining your cloud assets so you can maximize your IT spend.